by Brianna Crandall — March 25, 2015—Kardex Remstar, a Kardex Group company and a provider of automated storage and retrieval systems for manufacturing, distribution, warehousing, offices, and institutions, recently supplied a storage and retrieval system to a Maryland county that neatly stores the county’s fleet management parts while reducing the parts department footprint by 41 percent.
The Montgomery County Division of Fleet Management Services operates 24/7 to provide engine maintenance and repair services to the county as well as a number of other agencies and governments in the Montgomery area. Maintaining a fleet of over 2,205 automobiles, 454 heavy pieces of equipment, 390 transit buses, and 212 user agency-owned heavy equipment requires skilled technicians, efficient parts management, and excellent customer service, notes Kardex.
When a new heavy equipment and transit fleet facility was designed, little space was allocated for the parts department. “The plan had more service bay space but less space for parts,” said Keith Powers, program manager II, Division of Fleet Management. Montgomery County needed a solution for its parts department that would allow it to keep parts onsite and quickly accessible.
Two Shuttle Vertical Lift Modules (VLMs) from Kardex Remstar, each standing 14 feet tall, integrated with pick to light technology and inventory management software, allowed the fleet division to maintain its parts inventory while reducing the footprint by 41 percent. The parts room previously measuring 9,800 square feet was reduced to 5,800 square feet in the new facility. The two Shuttle XP VLMs sit side by side at the new facility, occupying a 112-inch by 112-inch area.
The VLMs are controlled by one workstation computer, Powers said. To retrieve a part, the operator simply enters the part number or scans a barcode. The extractor moves up the center column to retrieve the desired tray and delivers it to the operator at the ergonomically positioned access opening. Delivering the part to the operator eliminates walk and search time commonly associated with shelving or bins, improving picking speed, points out Kardex.
Each VLM is equipped with pick to light technology. A TIC (Transaction Information Center), integrated into the access opening of each unit directs the operator to the exact location of the part within the tray. The LED light bar (TIC) not only indicates the exact cell to pick from, but also displays the part number and description. Pick to light technology reportedly speeds the picking process and increases pick accuracy to 99.9 percent.
Power Pick Global inventory management software drives the VLMs and is integrated with the fleet management information system (FMIS), Faster, to track inventory levels and provide real-time inventory reports. Minimum quantity levels and reorder points can be set to ensure that the division always has the right parts on hand, allowing it to service vehicles faster. Of the fleet’s 6,000 parts numbers, about 3,200 are stored in the VLMs. The remaining heavier parts are stored on standard shelving.
Restocking is just as easy as picking. The inventory management software automatically selects a location for the new parts to be stored. The Shuttle VLM presents the tray in the access opening, and the TIC directs the operator to the exact location to put the part. The operator places the part on the tray, confirms the transaction, and the VLM stores the tray within the unit.
For operator safety, each VLM comes standard with a safety light barrier. If the safety light barrier is interrupted while the machine is in motion, the unit will immediately stop. The operator is then required to reset the safety button before the unit will resume.
